QUALITY
A PERFORMANCE EXCELLENCE APPROACH TO DOING BUSINESS
Quality has been a core focus at Braun since our first build in 1972. The Braun mission of “Built for Life” permeates everything that we stand for and everything that we do… from delivering great products that save lives, to building relationships that often last a lifetime, to providing our industry with a lifetime warranty on our module construction and durability.
We manufacture our ambulances in accordance with all applicable safety standards and have implemented our own Performance Excellence System to ensure quality at all levels. Our Performance Excellence System was designed to meet:
- The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Framework
- ISO/DIS-9001 (E)
- ANSI/ISO 14001
- Federal and State Regulations (as applicable)
In addition, we design and build our ambulances in accordance with:
- Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS)
- Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) J3026, J3027, J3102, J3043, J3057 and J3058
- Ambulance Manufacturers Division (AMD)
- National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
- GSA KKK-A-1822
- Ford Pro Upfitter
- General Motors Special Vehicle Manufacturer Business Assessment
- Ram Qpro
Internally, our department of Quality Assurance oversees vehicle quality at all levels in conjunction with an organizational structure that ensures design intent and vehicle and process quality is maintained through the entire manufacturing process. Quality Assurance also supports the continual development of the capabilities of our workforce and the continuous improvement of our key work systems, processes, and operations.
The goals of our Performance Excellence System are to:
- Help develop customer-oriented processes;
- Enhance customer satisfaction;
- Drive continuous improvement.
THE MALCOLM BALDRIGE NATIONAL QUALITY AWARD (MBNQA) FRAMEWORK
The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) was established by the US Congress in 1987. It was started to raise awareness of quality management and recognize US companies that have successfully implemented quality management systems. It is the nation’s highest presidential honor for performance excellence. The award is given annually in six categories, one being manufacturing.
Braun seeks to achieve and improve in the seven areas known as the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence. These are:
- Leadership: How upper management leads the organization, and how the organization leads within the community.
- Strategy: How the organization establishes and plans to implement strategic directions.
- Customers: How the organization builds and maintains strong, lasting relationships with customers.
- Measurement, analysis, and knowledge management: How the organization uses data to support key processes and manage performance.
- Workforce: How the organization empowers and involves its workforce.
- Operations: How the organization designs, manages, and improves key processes.
- Results: How the organization performs in terms of customer satisfaction, finances, human resources, supplier and partner performance, operations, governance and social responsibility, and how the organization compares to its competitors.
Braun Industries is a member of The Partnership for Excellence (TPE), a Baldrige-based program serving organizations in Ohio, Indiana and West Virginia. Through this organization, Braun has been recognized as both a Pioneer Award recipient and a Silver Award recipient.
ISO/DIS-9001 (E)
ISO stands for the International Organization for Standardization. ISO 9001 is defined as the international standard that specifies requirements for a quality management system (QMS). As with other frameworks for quality, it helps Braun consistently provide products and services that meet customer and regulatory requirements. It is the most popular standard in the ISO 9000 series and the only standard in which organizations can be certified. Meeting ISO 9001 standards helps us:
- Organize processes;
- Improve the efficiency of process;
- Continually improve.
Braun Industries is an ISO 9001:2015 compliant organization.
